Swansea University has collaborated with the Human Milk Foundation and portrait artist Leanne Pearce on the Connecting Hearts immersive art exhibition. The launch event in May gave the opportunity to connect with those involved in receiving, donating and supporting human milk banking services.

The Royal College of Midwives is urging politicians and the incoming Government to tackle maternity safety head-on in its pre-election How to Fix and Improve Maternity Safety guide. Breaking down barriers between staff groups by strengthening multidisciplinary training, and ensuring there are enough staff in the right place at the right time with the right skills to mitigate safety risks are fundamental to resolving the challenges in maternity services, says the RCM.

Work began at Royal Surrey’s Special Care Baby Unit in 2020 towards achieving the Unicef Baby Friendly Initiative accreditation and it is the first neonatal unit in its network to achieve the award. Assessors spent two days on the unit talking to parents about their experiences, evaluating the support they received and checking that best practice standards were in place.

In May, two reports were published showing the serious challenges facing maternity and neonatal services in the UK. Taken together, Bliss says these reports highlight the stark reality that some families experience around the time of labour and birth, and the impact of a failure to effectively address the issues that exist across maternity and neonatal services.

70 years ago, Radiometer launched the world’s first commercially available blood gas analyser. Now, 24 million patients a year are benefitting from the venture of what used to be a small Danish company.

The National Institute for Health and Care Research (NIHR) has launched its first ‘Challenge’ funding call to tackle inequalities in maternity care. A diverse research consortium will be established by the funding and, over five years, will deliver research and capacity building.

On 8th March more than 150 guests attended the 12th annual Ickle Pickles Incubator Ball, which raised over £70,000 for intensive care equipment for neonatal units in London and the London neonatal transfer service.

BAPM has opened consultation for its new document Recognising uncertainty: an integrated framework for palliative care in perinatal medicine. The document is to be published later in the year and BAPM is inviting comments at the present time.

Vygon’s Expert Umbilical neonatal catheter, a new umbilical catheter designed to reduce catheter-related bloodstream infections (CRBSIs) in preterm neonates, is now being used by a number of NHS trusts nationwide.

Tommy’s Joint Policy Unit is calling on all political parties to commit to the transformative change needed to save more babies’ lives.

A new government campaign - Start for Life’s ‘if they could tell you’ - has launched to support parents to help build secure bonds to help nurture their baby’s future mental health.

The Thirlwall Inquiry is set to deepen understanding of the culture of neonatal units following events at the Countess of Chester Hospital. Research is taking place into every neonatal unit in England and the conduct of all staff including managers, nursing and medical staff.